The T20 International tri-series in Namibia is the latest sports event not to be broadcast on South African television.
While local sport fans will continue to have full access to major sporting events on TV, it seems they are going to have to get used to watching less popular events on live streams.
After the French media giant Canal+ completed its acquisition of Multichoice earlier this year, it was reported that the new owners were eager to cut costs in order to improve profits.
Though it hasn’t been much of an issue yet, SuperSport subscribers have already started feeling the pinch, with the broadcaster opting not to purchase rights for the Winter Olympic Games earlier this year.
And rugby fans might not have access to Super Rugby Pacific games on television next season, with rumours suggesting SuperSport will not renew its broadcast deal.
While local sport fans might not be too concerned about these decisions – the small national team at the Winter Olympics were never going to be challenging for medals, and SA sides no longer compete in the Super Rugby competition – the decision by Canal+ to reduce production costs may already be hitting SA viewers closer to home.
The first match of the ongoing T20 International tri-series in Windhoek – featuring South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe – was scheduled to be shown on SuperSport, but the feed was cut during the opening game last week due to “major technical issues” and none of the remaining matches will be available on TV.
A SuperSport spokesperson said they were unable to provide further details, but it seems the broadcaster opted to take the feed from another company, rather than bidding for the primary broadcast rights and covering the extensive costs of sending its own crew to Windhoek.
Fortunately, that doesn’t mean local cricket fans can’t watch. The International Cricket Council website has been streaming the games, while Cricket South Africa is streaming the remaining matches this week on one of its YouTube channels.
Again, this series is hardly critical for local cricket fans, with a second-string national side facing lower-ranked opposition.
But the fact that it’s not being broadcast on SuperSport is another indication that South Africans might need to become accustomed to watching some events via live streams, rather than higher quality broadcasts on TV.
